Revenge (Batfamily) - Sequel to Brother In Arms

Chapter 5 ~ Attacks

Song : Blackened Roots by Adrian Von Ziegler. I listened to it while I wrote the second part.

It was past eight o'clock when the information invaded every news channels. Most people couldn't believe it to be true. They looked at their TV screens, completely overwhelmed by what was projected in front of their eyes. Images of terror, destruction, blood spilled in the streets... Down the screens, written in bold letters, was the same breaking news:

Explosion in Chicago, at least 300 dead

The footage were showing shocking images of panicked people desperately trying to find a shelter, running away from a strange green thick cloud of smoke mixed with the dark grey smoke of a small building which had collapsed near the spot where the explosion happened. They showed a mother, her face dusty and bloodied, holding on to the body of her dead toddler. The journalists were confusedly trying to make sense out of what happened but no one really knew. No one knew who did this nor why. And even more worrying, no one could explain what this green smoke in Chicago's sky was.

Dick, like most people, was staring at his TV screen that day. He tried to find clues in the numerous amount of images the news channel was flooding him in, he tried to analyze everything, but found nothing. At some points, he gave up and simply listened to the number of dead which was constantly rising with each minute that passed.

Seeing all these monstrosities caused his light blue eyes to become watery. Out of anger, he grabbed the little knife he had used to savor the meal he had prepared and precisely threw it to the wall, only a few millimeters away from the TV screen.

He clenched his fists briefly before he opened them again and raked his hand through his hair. He decided to turn off the television and instead grabbed his phone that had been lying on the table in front of him. A numerous amount of new messages immediately popped on the screen, mostly from his family and from Barbara asking him if he was aware about what happened in Chicago.

Without any strength to reply to any of the texts, he put the phone back on the table and thought he needed some fresh air.

He opened the large bay window, immediately feeling the lukewarm air invading his apartment. The young man took a few more steps forward and leaned on the iron railing. He silently observed how lively and safe Blüdhaven had become. It used to be more dangerous than Gotham but crime rate had dropped significantly to reach a "normal" number for a big city. Many criminals feared Nightwing so the criminal activities which had been taking place in his city had migrated to others or even stopped.

Now, people dared to go downtown at night. They dared to buy fancy stuff and wear them because they didn't fear getting robbed anymore. Everyone was really living and enjoying life. Most of the people Dick observed were smiling and laughing with their friends, siblings or lovers, still unaware of the horror which had struck Chicago.

The young man sighed deeply before his eyes rose towards the sky. The sun was setting in a mix of soft pink and orange colors behind Blüdhaven's skyline. 'Such a peaceful sight,' he thought. Behind him, Dick heard his phone vibrating on his living room's table. He went to grab it and saw that Jason was calling him. "Hey Jay," he said in a sad tone.

"Hey. Have you seen what happened in Chicago?"

"I did... it's terrible."

"Indeed... I was wondering if you had any clues on who could have done this."

Dick sighed deeply once again. "I have absolutely no idea, Jay. I found nothing on the footage."

"Shit... Maybe Tim has something. I'll call him after. Hey Dick, are you alright?"

There was a small pause before Dick was able to reply to his brother, his voice even sadder than before. "Not really... All those families destroyed, those lives stolen and for what? One stupid asshole's ideas?"

"I know..." Jason said in a whisper, his tone turning sad as well before he replied with a determined tone, "and that's why we have to find who did this and punish them. They took innocent lives, it can't stay unsanctioned. We'll track them down, Dickie, and we'll make them pay."

"Indeed, we will."

***

The three men checked behind them to be sure no one had followed them. Once they were perfectly sure they were alone, they walked in a small alley, nearly large enough for them to pass one at a time. The passage led them directly in front of an old warehouse entrance. They opened the large iron door and carefully locked it behind them, making sure once more that no one had followed them.

"I couldn't wait to remove this thing any longer," one of them whisper to the man near him, tearing off his balaclava from his head. The other man nodded silently, looking at the third one. He had removed his balaclava too, and was waiting for them to be done. He turned on light and started to walk through a long corridor, followed by the two others. After a small instant, the small group arrived into a large main hall.

A bigger group of men was there. Some were wearing black clothing, while a few others had white coats on. In front of them, guinea pigs had been handcuffed to their hospital beds. Some were begging the men wearing white coats to stop, telling them they couldn't take it anymore. Without mercy, the men in white plunged syringes into their necks. Some victims immediately fainted while others began to yell. Yells full of pain and desperation. Finally, after a few seconds, one of them stopped yelling and a white foam formed into his mouth. The poor man started to choke, but no one helped him. Instead, the men in white emotionlessly observed him and noted everything in their small notebooks.

Without looking at them, the leader of the small group headed straight to the end of the warehouse. It only took him half a second to spot the man he wanted to see.

It was another one of those men in white, but this one was older. His salt-and-pepper indicated at first sight that he was over fifty years old. He was talking with one of his assistant when someone suddenly screamed his name from behind his back.

"Doctor Basit!"

The man turned around and, before he could realize what was happening to him, a fist collided violently with his face. He fell over backward, dragging a medical cart down with him in his fall. A loud ear-splitting noise echoed through the whole warehouse and everyone stopped what they were doing to observe what was happening.

Doctor Basit instinctively raised his hands in front of him to protect himself, but a powerful kick met his side. The doctor writhed in pain. His assailant grabbed him by the collar of his white coat and lifted him up. "I expected better, Doctor!" the man shouted, his face distorted by anger. His fist was shaking as he rose it to strike the doctor once more.

"Please, Mister Vassili!" the doctor begged while he received another blow in the jaw.

The man glared angrily at the doctor. He tightened his grip around the man's collar and brought him closer to his face. "I asked you one thing, Doctor. What was it?"

"To cause as much damage as possible, sir."

"Exactly, Doctor," Vassili replied before his voice rose significantly once more. "SO WHY ISN'T CHICAGO WIPED OFF THE MAP?!" Swiftly, the man threw his knee directly into the doctor's stomach. The latter collapsed on the floor, coughing blood.

"I'm sorry, sir! I'll immediately work to improve the solution!" the doctor replied frantically, pleading for Vassili's clemency. Vassili stopped beating up the doctor and put back his black jacket into place.

"I'm giving you one last chance, Yann. If it's not satisfying, be prepared to suffer." The doctor nodded several times, his face turning pale. Vassili looked all around him and noticed that everyone in the warehouse was staring at him and Doctor Basit. "Get back to work, NOW!" he barked angrily before he headed to his own office in the warehouse.

____

Thanks for reading ^^